2008 Europe Youth Top 10- Sheffield
The eyes of the table tennis world will be firmly focused on Sheffield this weekend when England champion Paul Drinkhall and No 2 Darius Knight will lead the nations bid to win the most sought after prize in Europe.
The Europe Youth Top 10 at the English Institute of Sport ( 25/26/27 January) brings together all the very best in junior table tennis and for the first time in years English players are favourites to win titles.
For Drinkhall (17) from Loftus, Cleveland, and a nomination for the BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year three years in succession, it will provide an opportunity to retain his singles title which he won in Latvia last year.
Not since the gifted Carl Prean won the title in 1985 has England provided so much talent for this highly rated international tournament.
Both Drinkhall and Knight have been seeded to meet in the final after success followed success all over the world in the last twelve months.
But there are other home grown players who could also provide some cheer for the mountain of English support who will crowd into the EIS for three days of excitement.
Gavin Evans still only 14 and from Buckinghamshire is one of the brightest prospects on the European scene and is favourite to takes the Cadet title with Derbyshire’s Liam Pitchford competing in the same event.
Derbyshire’s Emma Vickers is the home country’s only player in the Junior Girls event with Cleveland’s Karina Lefevre taking her place in the Cadet event.
All the action begins on Friday at 2pm and concludes on Sunday afternoon with the semi-finals and finals.